Bob McDonnell backs domestic drones

Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell (R) said Tuesday that he supports the use of military-style drones to help local police monitor the commonwealth, saying that their deployment would be “the right thing to do.”

McDonnell argued that the advantages of aerial drones on the battlefield could be applied in the civilian policing context.

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“I think it’s great; I think we ought to be using technology to make law enforcement more productive, cuts down on manpower and also more safe, that’s why we use it on the battlefield,” McDonnell said on radio station WTOP.

Further, the governor said that drones would be cost-effective and make policing safer.

“If you’re keeping police officers safe, making it more productive and saving money … it’s absolutely the right thing to do,” he added.

However, the governor also said that it would be important to ensure that drone use for things such as traffic surveillance would ensure civil liberties, such as privacy, if local law enforcement agencies choose to employ them.

Just last month, Fairfax County Police Chief David Rohrer predicted to the same radio station that “drones will certainly have a purpose and a reason to be in this region in the next, coming years.”

These drones can be used to insure that the ******L PROBE is being regularly and properly inserted into all women as required by Virginia law. Only big government can insure that GOP laws are being obeyed by Virginia women.

I'm surely no conspiracy theorist, but it wasn't long ago (i.e. 9/10/01 and before) that the use of surveillance drones to monitor citizens' activities would have been abhorrent to our sense of freedom. However, since 9/11, people seem more willing to give up individual liberties in the name of safety and security, even though it is nothing more than security theater to enforce the "perception" that these intrusive measures have made us safer, despite the fact the statistics tell a completely opposite story. And while I tend to lean to the left, I think this is an issue that clearly reaches across the political spectrum. Rand Paul intends to introduce a bill to eliminate the TSA, as well as smaller bills to scale back its reach. In a time with Congress's approval rating at an all-time low, this is an issue Democrats need to get on board with and make us think, even if just for a fleeting moment, that the legislature is actually earning their pay and doing something for the people (instead of enriching their own campaign coffers and sucking up to big money lobbyists). Regardless of your political persuasion, Americans of all stripes need to stand up and say ENOUGH IS ENOUGH. No more searching elderly ladies and kids, no more stripping down to board a plane, no more domestic drones, no more warrantless domestic wiretaps or any other forms of warrantless surveillance of the American people. Although I don't think 9/11 was an inside job or any of that (with the exception of Building 7, the jury is still out on that one for me), I can understand why many people believe it was given the overreaching power grab and stripping of Constitutional rights that quickly followed, not to mention two unfunded wars that resulted in....well, nothing really, except a giant waste of money and loss of American life. The government obviously does not want to cede power, but the will of the people is stronger than the will of a few in Washington. So make your voices heard, talk to a Republican or Tea Partier if you're on the left, or a Democrat or OWS supporter if you're on the right, and I guarantee this issue is one you'll find you have more common ground than you may think. Then, together, start making some noise on this issue. Our worthless Congress will start shaking in their proverbial boots if they see Tea Party leaders and Progressive leaders standing up together on this issue. Let's do something productive for a change.

Ahhhh...the real reason - cuts down on manpower, the same manpower you cannot control to do your lackey work. And of course McDonnell wants to amke sure his retired military officer breathern make more money with the defense contractors.

We should test it first in the VA capital.....arm it with paint guns. First target....the Gov. Let's see how much collateral damage we get....ie...paint splatter. Only a GOP Gov. would come up with an idea like this....let's see how many jobs we can eliminate. PS. If Romney ends up in the oval office......you can literally shut the State of Virginia down. Question for the Day: How many government jobs will he eliminate in his first year?

Of course he would like domestic drones. This is the guy of mandatory trans******l ultrasounds. He wants to know exactly where everyone is at any given time as well as knowing what goes on inside women's bodies. Is anyone surprised that he supports this?